Final Crosstable

Official website: http://www.ks.gov.ba/Bosna2000/index.html

Games can also be viewed on ICC.

Annotated games in PGN

27 May 2000

Movsesian Plays Spoiler Role Again

Hey Sergei! A couple rounds ago, Movsesian's lot in this event seemed to be to battle Bacrot for the basement. But with his win over Morozevich yesterday and his win over Shirov today, he has played a major role in deciding who wins the Sarajevo supertournament which concludes on Monday.

In response to Movsesian's Sicilian, Shirov erected an unassuming setup with Be2, Be3, f4, etc. Movsesian applied pressure on the long diagonal with Bc6 and Qb7 while Shirov tried to make headway on the kingside. His attack, which at one point appeared promising, sputtered and died while Movsesian seized the center with pawns and wound up with an extra piece for a huge upset over the tournament leader.

Can Sergei do it for a third time in as many rounds? Movsesian plays Kasparov in the final round Monday. Shirov plays Bacrot.

Kasparov played 6. Be3 in response to Georgiev's Najdorf. The world's highest rated player soon developed overwhelming pressure on the queenside, aided by a passed c-pawn. After a series of exchanges, Kasparov ended up with a queen for 2 pieces, and Georgiev resigned after 34 moves.

The swashbuckling Evans Gambit was played in not one, but two games! The gambit still appears to be playable at the highest levels. Morozevich, who earlier in the tournament won a game with the King's Gambit, tried his skill this time with the Evans against Bacrot. The young Frenchman accepted the gift pawn but soon gave it back while exchanging two pieces. The result was equal material but Bacrot was left with 2 bishops while Morozevich rode 2 knights. Morozevich sacrificed the exchange, but Bacrot later gave it back, and the game was drawn after 43 moves.

Nigel Short, the Morozevich-wannabe in this event, sprung the Evans on his fellow Englishman Michael Adams. There were no brilliancies as a quick 18-move draw was agreed. Apparently neither side was willing to play it out. On the one hand, Adams was expected to finish among the leaders at Sarajevo. On the other, probably few seriously thought he might win the tournament. Going into the final round, he is tied with Shirov for second with 7 points, half-a-point behind the leader Kasparov. Monday, Adams duels Morozevich. Adams and Kasparov are currently the only undefeated players.

Why are so many top grandmasters playing gambits these days? Apparently the risk of giving up a pawn is justified for an unbalanced position with loads of counterplay. Topalov played the Benko Gambit against Bereev. The queens retired from the game early and Bareev castled long and worked on the center. In the endgame, Bareev decided not to repeat moves and tried for more. He won a pawn, but the resulting bishop-and-pawn ending was drawn after 46 moves.

Round 10 Results:

Shirov 0-1 Movsesian
Kasparov 1-0 Georgiev
Short ½-½ Adams
Morozevich ½-½ Bacrot
Bareev ½-½ Topalov
Sokolov ½-½ Gurevich

Shirov leads, but Adams catches up

Things are heating up in Sarajevo. The Englishman Michael Adams emerges as a serious candidate to win the Sarajevo supertournament after his win in the eighth round over Veselin Topalov. Adams caught Topalov's King in a mating net in the middle of the board deep in the endgame – the only way out would have been a desperate Knight sacrifice.

The eagerly awaited Shirov-Kasparov encounter proved to be no thrill. The two crowd pleasers were heading for a Sicilian showdown, but the Queens came off the board by move 15. After that, neither player tried to complicate, and a quick draw was agreed to the chagrin of the chess world.

The race is between the three now, since Russia's young Alexander Morozevich was surprisingly defeated by the former Armenian Sergei Movsesian in the French Advance in round 8.

In round 9, Yevgeny Bareev simplified to a lost ending against Kasparov, who collected the point in text-book fashion. Shirov was left with an army of pawns for a piece against the helpless Georgiev in a thematic Slav.

Adams fended off Sokolov's aggression in the Open Spanish, and ran away with his h-pawn. The young Frenchman Etienne Bacrot has shrugged off his losing streak, but is still at the bottom of the heap.

It promises to be a frantic race to the finish. All three contenders have relatively easy last two rounds, so we might be in for some blood on the board! Kasparov faces Georgiev and Movsesian, Shirov is up against Movsesian and Bacrot, and Adams takes on Short and Morozevich. Things look bright for Shirov.

Round 9 results:

Kasparov 1-0 Bareev
Georgiev 0-1 Shirov
Bacrot ½-½ Short
Movsesian 1-0 Morozevich
Adams 1-0 Sokolov
Gurevich 0-1 Topalov

Round 8 results:

Bareev ½-½ Gurevich
Topalov 0-1 Adams
Sokolov ½-½ Bacrot
Short ½-½ Movsesian
Morozevich 1-0 Georgiev
Shirov ½-½ Kasparov

Shirov Paints Another Masterpiece

He's been called the "Leonardo da Vinci" of chess, and Wednesday, Alexei Shirov showed why, as he defeated Bareev in artistic fashion. Bareev played his standard Caro-Kann and the position was closed until Shirov unexpectedly sacrificed his d-pawn to open things up in the center. Bareev's king was chased from the queenside back to the kingside, when he resigned after 47 moves. Shirov is now in sole possession of first place, and plays Kasparov Thursday. There is some "bad blood" between the two because Shirov thought he deserved a match with the world number one instead of Kramnik. Both players have a lot at stake tomorrow.

Kasparov and Morozevich played 26 moves of dazzling chess that ended in a perpetual check by Kasparov. Morozevich was a bit behind in development in the opening. Kasparov sacrificed pawns for open lines but Morozevich found threats against Kasparov's king. The world number one sacrificed some pieces to open up Morozevich's king for the draw. A short but thrilling game.

Adams played 2. d3 to Gurevich's French and got a passed rook pawn which eventually won the game for him. Topalov gave up a rook for bishop early in his game with Bacrot, and eventually got passed pawns on the queenside for the win. Sokolov won a long ending from Movsesian.

Round 7 Results:

Kasparov ½–½ Morozevich
Shirov 1-0 Bareev
Adams 1-0 Gurevich
Bacrot 0-1 Topalov
Georgiev ½–½ Short
Movsesian 0-1 Sokolov

23 May 2000

Short's Opening Strategy Pays Off

Nigel Short is playing unusual openings in the Sarajevo supertournament, probably because he was a last-minute replacement and didn't expect to compete. He doesn't have much to show for his strategy after 6 rounds, and is at the bottom of the crosstable. However, his opening strategy paid off today against Garry Kasparov, one of the tournament leaders. In response to Kasparov's Najdorf Sicilian, the game went 6. Bg5 e6 7. Qf3. The queen move is a bit unusual here, as the standard move is 7. f4. The queens were soon off the board, and Short had avoided Kasparov's opening book. The world's number one player couldn't push home a win and the game was drawn after 55 moves.

Morozevich-Shirov was a matchup of 2 of the world's most inventive supergrandmasters. It was a safe bet some unusual move would be played sooner or later. Morozevich took the honor this time, playing 5. Bd3 in the Petroff, instead of the common 5. d4. He seemed to gain the advantage in the early middlegame, but allowed Shirov to exchange off several pieces, and a draw was agreed after 28 moves.

Adams sacrificed the exchange late in his game against Bareev. Neither player could make progress and the game was drawn after 62 moves. Topalov-Movsesian seemed headed for a draw in a bishop, knight and pawns versus 2 bishops and pawns endgame, but Movsesian managed to get a passed pawn and queen it. But Topalov's 2 bishops and pawns were up to the task, and a draw resulted after 84 moves. Gurevich was the day's lone victor, topping France's Bacrot from an English Opening.

Round 6 Results:

Morozevich ½–½ Shirov
Short ½–½ Kasparov
Bareev ½–½ Adams
Topalov ½–½ Movsesian
Gurevich 1-0 Bacrot
Sokolov ½–½ Georgiev

21 May 2000

Kasparov, Shirov in the Lead

Kasparov and Shirov have moved into a 2-way tie for the lead with 4 points each after the 5th round of the Sarajevo supertournament. Kasparov easily defeated Sokolov's Russian Defense. Sokolov took a bishop with his knight on Kasparov's kingside, but lost material when he missed a simple rejoinder, and resigned after only 26 moves.

Shirov played an unusual answer to Short's Winawer French. The game eventually tured into a bishop-and-pawn ending with Shirov finding the win in 60 moves.

Morozevich played the Advance to Bareev's Caro-Kann. Wild complications ensued as Morozevich tore open Bareev's kingside while Bareev returned the favor. Morozevich ended up with 2 rooks and a bishop for a queen and 2 pawns, and the game was drawn after 30 moves.

Adams dispatched young monsieur Bacrot after only 26 moves. After busting up Adams' kingside, both castled long. But Bacrot missed a central pawn exchange tactic leaving Adams with a winning position.

Gurevich upheld the honor of the French Defense by beating Movsesian's Advance try in 35 moves.

Round 5 Results:

Kasparov 1-0 Sokolov
Shirov 1-0 Short
Morozevich ½–½ Bareev
Georgiev ½–½ Topalov
Bacrot 0-1 Adams
Movsesian 0-1 Gurevich

20 May 2000

Bareev Lone Winner

After yesterday's fireworks, Saturday was a "turn down day" as all but one game ended in draws.

Kasparov and Topalov repeated moves for a draw after only 18 moves. From a Slav Defense, Shirov emerged up a pawn, but when Sokolov got it back, the game was drawn after 27 moves. Short played the Exchange variation in answer to Morozevich's French, and most pieces were quickly removed from the board, resulting in a 22-move draw. Adams seemed to develop some pressure against Movsesian in the endgame, but the defense was adequate and the draw was in 41 moves. Bareev scored the only point of the round against the young Frenchman Bacrot. From an English Opening, Bareev got a passed queen-pawn and a king-hunt ensued with Bacrot resigning after 38 moves.

Round 4 Results:

Topalov ½–½ Kasparov
Sokolov ½–½ Shirov
Short ½–½ Morozevich
Adams ½–½ Movsesian
Bareev 1-0 Bacrot
Gurevich ½–½ Georgiev

19 May 2000

Kasparov, Shirov Victorious

Gurevich tried a similar idea in the French line played by Morozevich yesterday, capturing on f6 with his g-pawn and fianchettoing his queen-bishop. But Kasparov soon sacrificed a rook for a bishop, and wound up with a bishop, knight, and passed pawn for a rook, so Gurevich gave up after 53 moves.

Topalov decided he'd give the French a try as well. He captured on f6 with the g-pawn, castled kingside, then expanded on the queenside. Shirov quickly pushed his d-pawn to the seventh rank on the 15th move (!), creating a melee. The complications left Topalov with a shattered kingside, so he resigned after only 27 moves. A fascinating little game.

Morozevich, in an effort to maintain his reputation as an individualist competing at the highest level, played the King's Gambit. Sokolov accepted and soon got the queens off, but with material even, Morozevich quickly overwhelmed him. Sokolov resigned after 38 moves.

Short was in a sporting mood today. He played a Caro-Kann Gambit: 1. e4 c6 2. Nc3 d5 3. d4 dxe4 4. Bc4 Nf6 5. f3. Perhaps he's jealous of Morozevich? Bareev nabbed a pawn, exchanged some pieces, and accepted Short's resignation after 60 moves.

A quick draw for Adams and his Nimzo. Bacrot's Spanish was too hot for Movsesian.

Round 3 Results:

Kasparov 1-0 Gurevich
Shirov 1-0 Topalov
Morozevich 1-0 Sokolov
Short 0-1 Bareev
Movsesian 0-1 Bacrot
Georgiev ½–½ Adams

18 May 2000

Adams Holds Kasparov to a Draw

Even Michael Adams plays 6. Be3 in the Sicilian. Kasparov responded with his Scheveningen setup and the game was drawn after 47 moves. Kasparov was up the exchange, but his king was out in the open across the board and Adams had an extra pawn. Shirov conquered Gurevich's English Opening in 58 moves. It turned into a queen-and-pawn ending with Shirov enjoying an extra pawn and a winning position. Morozevich's French gave him a quick 18-move draw with Topalov.

Round 2 Results:

Adams ½–½ Kasparov
Topalov ½–½ Morozevich
Gurevich 0-1 Shirov
Sokolov ½–½ Short
Bacrot ½–½ Georgiev
Bareev ½–½ Movsesian

17 May 2000
Kasparov's Scotch Leaves Bacrot Coughing

Kasparov began the Sarajevo supertournament with an expected result: he uncorked his favorite Scotch, leaving the Frenchman Bacrot tipsy. Adams called upon his Petroff to halve the point with Shirov, even though he was a pawn down in the final position. Gurevich's Pirc didn't have enough get-up-and-go. Up a pawn, Gurevich aimed for the king and took Morozevich's king-rook pawn with his queen, but soon paid for it as Morozevich easily defended the attack and emerged up a rook with a pawn on the seventh. Bareev essayed the Benko Gambit and made some noise on the kingside, but Sokolov defended and a draw was agreed after only 30 moves. Short answered Topalov's Sicilian with 2. b3. The Englishman finally capitulated after 62 moves.

Round 1 Results:

Kasparov 1-0 Bacrot
Shirov ½–½ Adams
Morozevich 1-0 Gurevich
Sokolov ½–½ Bareev
Short 0-1 Topalov
Georgiev 1-0 Movsesian

Kasparov, Shirov to Settle Matters

Alexei Shirov wanted to play a match with Kasparov this year, but instead he will have to settle for tournament encounters such as this one. Bosna (Sarajevo) 2000, a Category XVIII event, runs from May 16 to 29 in Sarajevo.

Kasparov and Shirov are the favorites, but will be challenged by the likes of Adams, Morozevich (can his distinctive style succeed against the world's elite?) and perhaps Topalov, for the trophy. The other competitors seem less likely to wear the crown although surprises can always occur. Nigel Short was a last-minute replacement. Kramnik bowed out to burn the midnight oil studying for his exam with Kasparov later this year. Leko was reportedly one of the original invitees but decided on a vacation instead.

The opening ceremony is scheduled for Wednesday, May 17. Live games are advertised on the official website.

The 12 competitors:

Kasparov, Garry
Shirov, Alexei
Morozevich, Alexander
Adams, Michael
Bareev, Eugeny
Topalov, Veselin
Short, Nigel
Georgiev, Kiril
Sokolov, Ivan
Gurevich, Michael
Bacrot, Etienne
Movsesian, Sergei